Monday, March 31, 2014

Supreme Council Tries To Position Itself As Centrist-Nationalist Party Before Iraq’s 2014 Elections

The Islamic Supreme Council of Iraq (ISCI) and its Citizen’s
Alliance is attempting to move into another stage of its political career as it
prepares for this year’s parliamentary elections. The party was originally
formed in Iran to organize pro-Khomeini Iraqi forces on its side during the
Iran-Iraq War. Before the 2003 invasion it aligned itself with the United
States so that it would gain a seat in the post-Saddam government that the
Americans would put together. Afterward it argued for a Shiite region and
gained control of most of the south and Baghdad in the 2005 elections. It was
then punished in the polls in 2009 and 2010 for its poor governorship. It had
even more problems as in between those two elections its leader Abdul Aziz
al-Hakim passed away, and his son Ammar Hakim lost the support of the old
guard, which eventually led to the Badr Organization splitting away and joining
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. To the surprise of many ISCI made a comeback in
2013 in the governorate level voting. Now it is trying to build on that for
this year’s balloting. The party has tried to portray itself as a centrist and
nationalist organization that is willing to work with others to solve the
country’s deep divisions.

ISCI Leader Ammar Hakim has attempted to lead his party in a new direction in 2014 (LA Times)

This year the Supreme Council has tried to position itself
as a party committed to solving Iraq’s problems rather than creating more of
them by arguing with other lists. When the fighting in Anbar started in
December 2013 the Citizen’s Alliance first called
on the local tribes to confront the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
(ISIS), and then offered
a political plan to rebuild the province and empower local leaders. Many in
Anbar have complained that Baghdad is constantly interfering in their affairs and
ignoring their demands, so ISCI tried to address both those issues. It said
only through political compromises could the conflict be resolved in the
governorate. On the legislative front it called on lawmakers to attend sessions,
which is always a problem, so that laws can be passed to serve the public. Parliamentarians
are constantly absent, and because of the political divisions it is very
difficult to pass any meaningful laws. Ammar Hakim has met
with some governors like Basra’s Majid Nasrawi calling for better services
in the provinces. This was one thing that made the Citizen’s Alliance
successful in 2013, appealing to local concerns. It has tried to position
itself as a mediator in the conflict between the central and Kurdistan regional
governments. In March for instance, it offered an initiative
to resolve the dispute between the two over the budget and oil industry based
upon greater transparency over production and exports, while maintaining
Baghdad’s control over the latter. On this issue ISCI was taking more of a
nationalist position as it argued for the Oil Ministry to maintain the lead
over the energy field. Hakim also met
with Moqtada al-Sadr and offered to be a middleman between Maliki and Kurdistan,
and said that he was committed to working out the differences between two so
that the 2014 budget could be passed. The budget has become a political
football between the premier and his opponents. Once again, the Supreme Council
was attempting to portray itself as a list more interested in getting things
done then arguing with others. When a presidential guard killed a Radio Free
Iraq reporter in Baghdad in March it criticized other parties for
attempting to use it for their own political gain. ISCI was referring to the
prime minister here as he personally oversaw the arrest of the perpetrator in
an obvious political move just before the elections. What differentiated the
Supreme Council was that it did not directly attack Maliki. Finally, it
announced a “Citizens’
Wants” campaign to try to connect to the public claiming that it wanted to
appeal to all sects and groups in the country, while reaching
out the tribes and asking their sheikhs to turn out their followers. All
these themes make up the Supreme Council’s current election campaign. Rather
than getting caught up in partisan disputes it has offered itself up as an
honest broker with plenty of ideas to address the country’s many problems. It
has used both populist and nationalist rhetoric aligning itself with local
concerns, while also stressing the necessity for an effective central
government. This is a long ways away from the group’s original image of a
pro-Iranian Shiite party that wanted decentralization, and shows the current
transformation Hakim is attempting to orchestrate.

The Supreme Council has shown the ability to learn and adapt
to its past mistakes. After its devastating losses in the 2009 and 2010
elections it completely reformed its message. It is stressing its Iraqiness and
commitment to Baghdad as the center that can resolve the country’s many
problems with the periphery. Unlike the vast majority of other political
parties, ISCI has largely refrained from attacking others directly. Since it is
largely competing for the Shiite vote this sets it apart from the Prime
Minister’s State of Law (SOL) and Moqtada al-Sadr’s Ahrar bloc. Sadr has tried
to appropriate some of these same themes, but has increasingly moved towards
attacking the Prime Minister leading to a war of words between the two. SOL has
also consistently attacked its rivals, blaming both its domestic and foreign
opponents for all the country’s ills. With its success in the 2013 provincial
vote the Supreme Council is hoping to do just as well or better this year. How
many seats it gains is actually not as important as what direction it takes
after all the ballots are counted. Whatever the breakdown the Shiite parties
will still have the majority. It is now clear that Sadr is going to challenge a
third term for Maliki. That means which side the Supreme Council takes will
have the greatest chance to lead the country. Right now ISCI is trying to
benefit from the disputes between those two, but it will eventually have to
decide to align with one or another, and that might be the turning point in the
government formation process that will be a long and difficult one.

SOURCES

AIN, “Hakim urges for heavily
participation in next elections,” 3/27/14

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About Me

Musings On Iraq was started in 2008 to explain the political, economic, security and cultural situation in Iraq via original articles and interviews. If you wish to contact me personally my email is: motown67@aol.com